March 28, 2012 (KERSHAW, S.C.) - David Malukas returned to World Karting Association action this past weekend at Kershaw, South Carolina's Carolina Motorsports Park, where round two of the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series took center stage at CMP's popular 0.7-mile sprint course.Malukas, who spent the winter competing in the prestigious Formula Kart Productions' Florida Winter Tour, made himself feel right at home in the Carolinas with a pair of top-five podium finishes and a couple more solid top-10 runs against full fields of talented young racers."We had a good weekend and I'm happy," David said upon returning home to Chicago after another long weekend of racing. "I like racing at Kershaw and with the WKA. I think we'll continue improving and hopefully get our first WKA national win very soon. The Birel chassis were very good and the Doug Fleming engines ran strong. And Jason (Birdsell) did a great job setting up the chassis like he always does. Thanks to my dad for all the help and support."Here's a rundown of Malukas' weekend in South Carolina.Saturday recapThe Chicago native kicked the weekend off with an eighth-place finish in Saturday's Cadet Final 1. David started the race in 12th and fought hard throughout the 11-lapper to earn his third top-10 finish of the 2012 Man Cup season.Malukas and his No. 79 MKP Birel returned to the track for Saturday's fifth race, Yamaha Sportsman 1, which saw him keep the day's top-10 streak alive with a nice seventh-place result of 45 starters. David was in the thick of the battle throughout the contest and ended up crossing the stripe less than a second back of the winner, but had to settle for seventh place.David's third race Saturday was his best of the day. Komet Sportsman hit the track as the second-to-last main event of the day, and the Jason Birdsell-led Malukas team had their eye on a top finish after laying down some very competitive times in the KPP-powered division throughout Friday's practice.Starting seventh, Malukas got a terrific start and hit his marks throughout the main event. Running second late in the going, Malukas battled hard with Johnny Smith before giving way to Smith and crossing the finish stripe third in the 24-kart field."We were very happy to get third in the Komet Sportsman class," David said Saturday night. "We were one of the fastest in practice and wanted to back it up in the race. The Komet is my favorite engine in WKA."Sunday recapIf WKA offered a hard-charger award for advancing the most positions in a race, Malukas surely would have been in contention for it in Sunday's Cadet Final 2. Bad luck in the pre-final forced David to start the final in 36th position. With only 11 laps to work with, Malukas passed multiple karts nearly every lap and made his way to 14th before the checkered flag waved.David's final race of the weekend may have been his best. Forty-six karts lined up for Yamaha Sportsman 2 with Malukas' HMD Trucking Birel starting ninth. David got off to a terrific start and raced into the top five after a short time.Malukas waged a spirited battle with several top youngsters and fended off Leonardo Stoia and others on his way to a fine fourth-place finish and his second podium of the weekend.David's fourth-place finish in Yamaha Sportsman 2 gave him three top fives on the 2012 WKA season, including a pair of third-place finishes.After several consecutive weeks of racing, the Malukas team now has a few weeks off before returning to action at the WKA Great Lakes Series opener April 27-29 at Pennsylvania's Pittsburgh Int'l Race Complex (formerly BeaveRun). The following weekend, May 4-6, will have Malukas back at BeaveRun for round three of the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series.----------David Malukas is a 10-year-old national sprint go-kart racer from Chicago, Illinois. Malukas is a multi-time top-five finisher in Jr Sportsman divisions in national World Karting Association competition and a feature winner in WKA Great Lakes and Route 66 sprint regional series. Malukas rides No. 79 MKP Birels. For more information on David, visit http://DavidMalukas.com.